It’s been a brutal start to the 2018-19 season for the Houston Rockets. Despite the fact that the team came in hungry to topple the Golden State Warriors and win an NBA championship, the Rockets fell to 1-5 on the year after a 104-85 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers at home. It was so bad that Houston only scored 36 points in the first half and shot 32.3 percent from the field as a team.
The Rockets are in a weird spot, because while a number of their issues can be written off as James Harden is out with an injury, it doesn’t take away from some of the team’s glaring issues. Things like the inability to replace departed wings Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute stick out, along with the fact that their bench hasn’t been especially good this year.
It’s gotten to the point that the always-blunt Mike D’Antoni straight up said there are major issues in Houston right now, and they go beyond anything that has to do with skill on the basketball court.
Coach Mike D’Antoni on state of the 1-5 Rockets: I don’t have a lot of answers right now…we’re not playing well. We’re going to have to get in a room and do some talking and figure this out…We’ve lost our swagger and are on our heels.
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) October 31, 2018
The good news is that you only need one winning streak to get that sense of swagger and confidence back, and perhaps a skull session could help Houston identify some problems that can be easily remedied. Still, despite the fact that a player as brilliant as Harden will be back soon — along with guys like Brandon Knight and Marquese Chriss who, while unspectacular, may provide some much-needed depth — it makes sense to question whether this Rockets squad has what it takes to win a ring … unless, of course, they can swing a major trade to acquire some disgruntled star in Minnesota.
